Method of and apparatus for operating on unattached soles



Dec. 7, 1937. c. E. HOOD METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OPERATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES Filed Dec. 12, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l I I J .J

C. E. HOOD Dec. 7, 1937. 2,101,179

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OPERATING ON UNATTAC'HED SOLES Fi led Dec. 12, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet2 Patented Dec. 7, 1937 PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OPER- ATING ON UNATTACHED SOLES (lharles E. Hood, Lynn, Mass, assignor to United.

Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N. J. a corporation. of New Jersey Application December 12, 1935, Serial No. 54,112

1'1 Claims.

This invention relates to methods of, and machines for, operating on unattached soles, and is illustrated as providing improvements in methods of preparing soles for attaching with adhesive cement, and improvements in machines for performing such preparatory operations.

In the preparation of tread-soles intended to be attached to certain types of shoes with adhesive cement, it is now customary to perform the following preparatory operations on the attaching face of each sole after that face has been shaved to remove whatever fleshy substance may have been left on it, but before the sole is laid on the bottom of a lasted shoe: via, a shank-reducing operation by which the thickness of the shank, or at least its two margins, is made considerably less than that of the forepart; a forepart-re-' ducing operation by which a marginal band of the forepart, about of an inch wide, is made slightly thinner than the middle portion but not so thin as the marginal bands of the shank; a roughening operation by which a marginal band in both the forepart and the shank is slightly disintegrated to insure a strong bond of the attaching cement; and an edge-beveling operation after the cement on the roughened margin has hardened. One purpose of the edge-beveling operation is to remove all cement from a narrow outer marginal band of the sole, and another is to provide for a crease between the marginal extension of the sole and the upper of a shoe, such a crease being intended to receive the perimeter of a circular disk or shield lying against a rotary edge-trimming cutter with which the sole is to be trimmed after being attached.

It has been the pficticeto perform these four preparatory operations separately and to use four distinct machines for performing them. Ohviously, such procedure requires four distinct handlings of each work-piece, and not only retards production but also adds to the cost of labor and machinery.

With these conditions in view, an object of the present invention is to provide for performing the specified operations in such a manner that any two or three, or even all four of them may be performed simultaneously.

For example, one novel aspect of the invention consists in simultaneously shaving two marginal bands one within the other on the attaching face of a sole, and at the same time disintegrating the surface of the inner band so shaved. The outer band may be shaved to form a rabbet or to produce a bevel formation, either being suitable to make it smooth and to provide for a crease in which the shield of an edge-trimming cutter may run after the sole is attached to a shoe.

Another novel aspect of the invention consists in shaving a narrow outer band of the attaching face of a sole, shaving an inner marginal band thereof less deeply than the outer band, and disintegrating the surface of the inner band while the shaving thereof progresses.

The invention also provides for shaving a sole more deeply in-the shank than in the forepart incidentally to performing one continuous shavlng operation that traverses the margins of both the shank and the forepart.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved machine by which any one or any combination of the preparatory operations above described may be performed under suitable control with regard to the widths of the bands of operation and the depths of penetration into the sole-stock.

For example, according to one aspect of the invention the illustrated machine comprises means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, cutting means having a cutting edge arranged to shave a marginal band of the sole, and cutting means having a serrate cutting edge arranged to cut grooves in the shaved band lengthwise thereof, the cutting edges -being arranged in tandem relation.

Various other features and combinations of structure are embodied in the illustrated machine and set forth in the claims appended hereto.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the attaching face of a sole that has been prepared in accordance with this invention for the application of an'adhesive cement;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view representing the forepart of a sole in two positions which illustrate one manner of obtaining improved results from the preparatory operations hereinafter described, the figure also including representations of a cutter-head and means for guiding and feeding the sole by its perimeter;

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic side elevation of a portion of a cutter-head designed to perform the operations hereinafter described, a marginal portion of a sole being represented in dotted lines;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of a sole such as that represented in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the marginal portion of the forepart of a sole, for example the portion intersected by line V-V of Fig, 4;

' latter being represented by dotted lines;

Fig. 8 is aside elevation of a machine by which the preparatory operations herein described may be performed simultaneously;

Fig. 9 is a horizontal section through the structure intersected by line IX-IX of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a front elevation of a rotary cutter provided with cutting edges for shaving a marginal band of a sole and with serrate cutting edges arranged to cut grooves in the shaved surface of the band;

Fig. 11 is a side elevation of the cutter shown in Fig. l; and

Fig. 12 is a top-plan view including a pair of feed-rolls, a portion of a sole, and one of the teeth of the cutter illustrated in Figs. 10 and 11.

Figs. 1 and 4 illustrate a typical leather out-sole III that has been prepared in accordance with this invention and is in condition to receive a marginal coating of adhesive cement by which it may be attached to a shoe. attaching face of the sole is exposed to view. A narrow outer marginal band I I (intended to provide a marginal extension when the sole is attached to a shoe) has been shaved to reduce its thickness and to provide a smooth upper surface; an inner marginal band I2 has been shaved less deeply than the band II to effect a relatively slight reduction of its thickness and has also been roughened by cutting fine grooves therein, the grooves extending lengthwise of the band. These bands II and I2 extend around the forepart of the sole and along both sides of the shank to or slightly into the heel-seat, but not around the latter because the usual practice of cutting away the margin of the heel-seatto accommodate a wood-heel takes care of that area. As shown in Fig. 4, the boundary between the bands II and I2 is formed by a shoulder l3. Moreover, the shank of the sole is thinner than the forepart in consequence of being shaved more deeply (compare Figs. 5 and 6), the transitions between the lesser thickness and the greater thickness being gradual and being located at or slightly behind the ball-line. The dotted lines in these figures indicate the initial thickness and cross-sections of the'sole. It is also to be observed that the smooth outer band I I is relatively wide in the forepart and relatively narrow along both margins of the shank-portion, and that the transitions in width are gradual. The lesser width of the outer band I I in the shank-portion is desirable to facilitate the final edge-trimming operation by which the perimeter of a sole is usually trimmed after the sole has been attached to a shoe, since the bulging or overhanging portion of the body of the shoe in the shank interferes with the final edge-trimming operation, whereas the forepart of a shoe does not bulge or overhang the margin II and therefore does not cause such interference.

According to the present invention, the shaving of the band I] the shaving and .grooving of the band I2, and the forming of the shoulder I3 may all be accomplished simultaneously in one pro.- gressive operation with one handling of the sole by relatively moving the sole and a suitable cutting instrumentality having. a profile .consistent with the formations to be imparted to the margin In these figures the of the sole. Moreover, incidentally to the progress of the operation along the opposite margins of the shank-portion of the sole, the greater reduction of the thickness of the sole in the shankportion may be effected by regulatingthedepth to which the cutting instrumentality may penetrate.

One type of apparatus suitable for accomplishing the results above described is illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9, and certain details thereof are illustrated also in some of the other figures. R..- ferring to Fig. 8, a sole I0 is represented as lying partly on a stationary supporting table I8 and partly on a rotary circular supporting table I9 by which a portion of the sole is maintained against the bottom of a rotary power-operated cutterhead comprising a toothed cutter 20. for operating on the band I2 and a toothed cutter 2| for operating on the band I I. These cutters are carried by a horizontal shaft 22 arranged in bearings 23 in a frame 24, the shaft being provided with a pulley 25 on which a driving belt may run. While any preferred means may be used to'secure the cutters 20 and 2i to the shaft 22, I prefer a well-known type of bushing 26 (Fig. 11) provided with kerfs to render it expansible and also provided with an internal frusto-conical surface (not shown) by which it may be expanded to grip the cutters when forced toward the larger end of a frusto-conical extension of the shaft. The construction of the bushing 26 and the frusto-conical extension of the shaft are the same as the corresponding details of construction illustrated in Fig. 3 of United States Letters Patent No. 1,724,205 and require merely a washer 21 and an attaching screw 28 to complete the assemblage.

The cutter 20 is provided with alternate high teeth and low teeth all of which are skewed as shown in Figs. 2, 10, 11 and 12, although the skewed arrangement is not represented in Fig. 3 which is diagrammatic. The low teeth are provided with skewed peripheral cutting edges 30 adapted to shave the band l2 of the sole, while the high teeth are provided with serrate cutting edges 3| the points of which project slightly beyond the path of the edges 30 to engrave or score fine shallow grooves in this band and thus disintegrate the shaved surface thereof. Since the cutter 20 is slightly tapered the edges 30 and 3| are spiral rather than strictly helical. The skewed arrangement of the cutting edges is desirable not only to facilitate their cutting action but also to maintain the perimeter of a sole against a pair of feed-rolls 32 with which the machine is provided. In Fig. 12 the profile of the cutter 20 is represented in dotted lines, while one of the teeth in contact with the sole is repreare preferably fluted to provide sharp-edged teeth adapted to indent the perimeter of 'a sole sufllciently to insure feeding movement of the latter. The shafts 3-3 are both driven in the same direction, one of them being provided with a pulley 34 to which rotation is transmitted by a belt 35 from a driving pulley 36. Pinions 31 formed on or attached to the shafts 33 are connected by an intermediate gear 38 aflixed to a shaft 39 that carries the rotary sole-supporting table l9. Thus, the gear 38 not only transmits rotation from one of the pinions 31 to the other but also transmits rotation to the table IS. The driving pulley 36 is one element of a rotary unit that also includes a worm-gear 40, both of these elements being rotatably mounted on a spindle 4| afiixed in a stationary bracket 42. The worm-gear 40 receives rotation from a worm 43 formed on or afixed to a shaft 44 journaled in the frame 24 and provided with a pulley 45 on which a driving belt may run. The bracket 42 and the frame 24 are rigidly connected by bolts 46 and 4'I,'the latter also serving to secure, the frame assemblage to a supporting column 48.

To provide for moving the sole-supporting means up and down while a sole is in operation, the shafts 33 and 39 are journal'ed in a vertically movable bearing member 50 from which arms 5| project to provide anchorage for the non-rotary sole-supporting table H3. The rotary table l9 occupies a recess 52 formed in the table l8 and projects slightly above the latter to improve the work-feeding effect. The shafts 33 are supported by a transverse key 49 inserted into a socket in the bearing member 50 and intersecting grooves formed in the shafts. The bearing member 50 and the stationary bracket 42 are provided with cooperative tongue-and-groove formations 53 by which the up-and-down movements of the bearing member 58 are guided. The limits of such movement may be established and regulated by nuts 54 arranged on a screw-threaded rod 55 and spaced apart to receive between them a fixed abutment 56 which, as shown in Fig. 8, is a rigid portion of the bracket 42., The upper end of the rod 55 is rigidly secured to the bearing member 50 by being screwed-into a lug 51 formed thereon. A compression spring 58 is provided to maintain the bearing member 50 and the sole-supporting tables l8 and I9 normally at their upper limit of movement. The lower end of the spring is seated on the bottom of .a socket 59 formed in the bracket 42 while the upper end is seated in a correspondving socket formed in the lug 51 of the bearing member 50. Depression of the sole-supporting means maybe effected by a treadle (not shown) and a treadle rod 60 connected to the rod 55 by a pivot-pin 6|.

As shown in Fig. 3, the cutter 2| is provided with peripheral cutting edges 62 arranged to shave the outer marginal band ll of the sole and form a smooth surface thereon below the level of the band l2, this outer band constituting what is commonly termed the marginal extension when the sole is attached to a shoe. The greater depth to which the band H is shaved insures a crease in which the rim of the shield of an edge-trimming cutter may run when the final edge-trimming operation is being performed after the sole has been attached to a shoe. Moreover, the smooth surface formed. on the band I I by the cutter 2| insures smooth running of the shield thereon and smooth operation of the edge-trimming cutter with which the shield is combined. Again, since the shaved surface of the band II is below the level of the roughened band l2, the latter may be readily coated with adhesive'cement without applying any cement to the band II, and when cement is so applied no necessity arises for removing any of it thereafter, since the cement will be retained within the bounds of the shoulder |3 by thegro'oves cut in the band l2 by the serrat cutting edges 3|. I

Assuming that the cutter-shaft 22 and the work-feeding shaft 44 are both in rotation, the.

herein-described preparatory operation may be performed on the sole with the illustrated ma chine as follows. The operator may first depress the sole-supporting means to facilitate inserting a sole under the cutters, whereupon a sole lying on its tread-face will be placed so that a point adjacent to the junction of the heel-seat portion feed-rolls. The rotary driven table I9 supplements the feeding effect of the feed-rolls 32. The shaving of the bands H and I2 and the grooving of the latter band now progress from thelheelseat portion of the sole toward the toe end, the cutting of the bands at this stage being relatively deep to make the shank-portion of the solerelatively thin. Since the point of operation lies between the points of contact of the sole and the feed-rolls (see Figs. 2 and. 12) the widthof the band I I will be of relatively small magnitude along the shank-portion, particularly along that portion where the perimeter is incurved. -When the operations have progressed to a point at or near the ball line, the operator will depress the treadle by which the work-supporting tables l8 and I9 are moved downwardly against the force of the spring 58. Now the penetration of the cutters will be less deep and will continue so while the operations progress around the forepart to a point on the opposite side at or near the ball 1ine,.whereupon the operator will again release the treadle to obtain a relatively great reduction of thickness while the operations progress from the ball line to the terminal point at or near the junction of the shank-portion and the heel-seat portion. H

When the terminal point is reached the operator will again depress the treadle and withdraw the sole from the cutters.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached shoe-soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in simultaneously shaving two marginal bands one within the other on the attaching face of a sole, and at the same t me disintegrating the surface of the inner one of said bands.

2. That improvement in methods of preparing soles, which consists in shaving a narrow outer band ofthe attaching face of an unattached sole, simultaneously shaving an inner marginal band thereof less deeply than the outer band, and disintegratingthe surface of the inner band while the shaving thereof progresses.

3. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached shoe-soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in rabbeting the margin of theattaching face of a. sole to form a shoulder substantially parallel with the perimeter of the sole, simultaneously shaving a band bounded by said shoulder, and disintegrating the surface of said band.

4. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached shoe-soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in rabbeting the margin of the attaching face of a sole to form a shoulder substantially parallel with the perimeter of the sole, simultaneously shaving a band bounded by said shoulder, and disintegrating the surface of said band with grooving cuts substantially parallel with the perimeter.

5. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached shoe-soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in simultaneously shaving two parallel and contiguous bands of the attaching face of a sole one deeper than the other and lying at the margin of the sole.

6. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached shoe-soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in simultaneously shaving two parallel and contiguous bands of the attaching face of a sole one deeper than the other and lying at the margin of the sole, and disintegrating the surface of the inner one of said bands.

7. That improvement in methods of preparing unattached soles for attaching with adhesive cement, which consists in progressively shaving an outer marginal band and an inner marginal band of the attaching face of a sole, and simultaneously disintegrating only the surface of said inner band.

8; A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, cutting means having a cutting edge arranged to shave a marginal band of the sole, and cutting means having a serrate cutting edge arranged to cut grooves in said band lengthwise thereof,

said cutting edges being arranged one behind' the other.

9. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide and feed the sole by its perimeter, cutting means arranged to shave a narrow outer marginal band of the sole, and cutting 'means arranged to shave an inner marginal band less deeply than said outer band.

10. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, cutting means arranged to shave a narrow outer marginal band of the sole, cutting means arranged to shave an inner marginal band less deeply than said outer band, and means arranged to regulate the depthsof the cuts made by said cutting means while the shaving of said bands is in progress.

11. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole,

means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter,

cutting means arranged to shave a narrow outer marginal band of the sole, cutting means arranged to shave an inner marginal band less deeply than said outer band, and serrate cutting means arranged to cut grooves in said inner band without disintegrating the shaved surface of said outer band.

12. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, and a rotary cutter-head the periphery of which is provided with cutting edges arranged to shave a marginal band of the sole and with serrate cutting edges arranged to cut grooves in the shaved surface of said band. l

13. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, a rotary cutter-head the periphery of which is provided with uninterrupted cutting edges arranged to shave, and with serrate cutting edges arranged to cut grooves in, a marginal band of the sole, means arranged to move said solesupporting means while said cutter-head is operating, to regulate the depths of the shaving cuts and the grooving cuts, and means arranged to establish limits of regulatory movements of said-,sole-supporting means.

14. A machine for operating on soles compris ing means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to guide the sole by its perimeter, and a rotary cutter-head the periphery of which is provided with cutting edges arranged to shave a narrow outer marginal band of the sole, and with cutting edges arranged to shave an inner marginal band less deeply than said outer band.

15. A machine for operating on soles comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, a pair of feed-rolls the peripheries of which are arranged to engage the perimeter of the sole in tandem relation, and means arranged to operate on the marginal portion of the sole that lies between the points of contact with said feedrolls.

16. A machinefor operating on soles comprising a rotary sole-supporting table, a pair of feedrolls the peripheries of which are'arranged to engage the perimeter of a sole in tandem relation, means arranged to operate on a sole lying on said table, a train of three gears of which the intermediate gear is rigidly related to said table and the other gears rigidly related to said feedrolls, respectively, and means for driving said train of gears.

17. A machine for operating on sales comprising means for supporting an unattached sole, means arranged to shave a marginal band of the sole and simultaneously disintegrate the shaved surface of said band with grooving cuts that progress lengthwise of the band, and means arranged to feed the sole by engagement with its perimeter.

CHARLES E. HOOD. 

